Butterfly valve



Feb. 2, 1960 C, R. TAYLOR 2,923,523

BUTTERFLY VALVE I Filed Feb. 8, 1957 50 Fig. 2

INVENTOR Char/es Tay/0r ATTORNEY BUTTERFLY VALVE Charles R. Taylor,Lubbock, Tex., assignor of one-third to Wendell Coffee, Lubbock, Tex.

Application February 8, 1957, Serial No. 638,495.7 s claims. (cl.251-175) This invention relates to valves for agricultural irrigation.

Often in irrigating. row crops, use is made of gated pipe-Le., a watercarrying conduit transverse to theV rows-from which header lateral tubesbranch off for each row. Each lateral tube has a valve. This valveserves two purposes, rst, to throttle the ow of some rows so that aneven distribution is obtained; and second to completely shut off thellow to some rows in the event it is 'not desired to irrigate all rows.l

Since a large number of these valves are used, it is essential that theybe inexpensive. It is desirable that they completely eliminate the ow ofwater when closed.

An object of this invention provides a valve which will completely shutolf the flow when closed. i

Another object is to provide a valve which has a long life. c l

Further objects aretoachieve `the above withgadevice that is sturdy,simple, and reliable, yet cheap and easy to manufacture.

'I'he specic nature of the invention as well as other objects, uses, andadvantages thereof will clearly appear from the following descriptionand from the accompanying drawing, in which:

Fig. l is an axial section of the valve in place in the lateral tube.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the metal reinforcing disc.

Fig. 3 is a plan of the valve disc attached to its shaft.

Fig. 4 is a partial axial section taken on line 4-4 of Fig. 3. Theposition of the inside wall of the tube is indicated by a phantom line.

Fig. 5 is a partial axial-section of the mold in which the valve iscast, showing how it is formed.

Fig. 6 is an axial section of the valve in place showing the distortionas it is moved to the closed position.

Fig. 7 is an axial section of the valve in place after it springs backinto final closed position.

As seen in the drawing, the valve or disc 10, is attachedv to shaft 12by two screws or pins 14. The shaft passes through diametrically opposedholes 16 in tube 18. The holes are slightly larger than the shaft; it isnot necessary that this be a water-tight joint. The tube has acylindrical bore of circular cross-section 20. The shaft has a bentportion extending outside the tube which forms a handle 22. Bead 50 onthe end of tube 10 stiffens the tube and provides means for attaching asoc not shown.

The valve or disc 10 comprises a stiflener or reinforcing disc 24 with aresilient covering 26. At the perimeter of the valve is bead or lip 28.On one face of the valve is annular groove 30 adjacent this lip. Thediameter of the valve 10 is slightly larger than the inside diameter ofthe tube or bore diameter 20.

The purpose of the construction outlined above is for the valve tooperate in the manner illustrated in Figs. 6 and 7. When the shaft 12 isrotated to cause the valve 10 to turn in the direction of arrow a inFig. 6, the lip is distorted due to frictional contact with the bore 20.On

ice

the side 32 which is moving down stream relative to Huid flow F, the lipis distorted away from the at face of the valve which is attached to theshaft. On the side 34 whichvis moving upstream relative flow F, the lipis distorted back upon itself and towardfthe at face.

When the turning movement on the shaft is releasedi.e., theoperatorturns loose handle 22-the resilience of the covering in the vicinity ofthe Ylip causes theV valve to rotate slightly in the direction oppositearrow a. Then the valve springs back to assume the position of Fig. 7.The lip on side 34 rolls back to its normal position. The

lip all the wayaround the Valve is pressed against the bore vby theresilience ofthe material. Also the fluid pressure in groove 30 aids thelip in being sealed against the inside tube wall. The lip seals upstreamfrom hole 16 and therefore vthere is no leakage at that point. When thevalve is open, leakage is not critical because water is being releasedwithin a few inches of that point; also the leakage is quite small dueto the low pressure and the fact. that at all times the lip 28 is incontact with the wall just upstream of hole 16.

A specicconstruction which obtains the desired operation is: f y

The metal stiiener 24 has a diameterof aboutV onehalf inchless than thediameter of the bore 20. That is, if the bore is 2.400 inch diameter thestiffener would be about 1.900 inch. However, this dimension is notcritical and it may .be as much as a quarter inch less. There are apluralityof perforations 36 in the disc.

Rubberis the preferred covering for the metal stiffener and forms' thedisc 10 which is the valve. The rubber shouldbe supple or flexible aswellas springy. A mixture of natural/and butylrubber, with about two anda third times as much natural as butyl, has proven satisfactory. Thishas about the same characteristics as the rubber used in automobiletires. The rubber is cured or vulcanized for twenty minutes or more at atemperature of 300-3l0 F. The perforations 36 provide a means for therubber on either side of stilener 24 to be bonded together.

Mold 38 is made by cutting cylindrical cavity 40 (shown in broken linesof Fig. 5) about a quarter inch deep and about four-tenths inch lessdiameter than the bore diameter'. Neither of these dimensions arecritical. A cylindrical step 42 (also shown broken) is cut aboutone-sixteenth inch deep and the same diameter as the bore 20. A tool 44,about one-eighth inch wide with a semi-circular nose is advanced at anangle of about 60 to the axis of the cylindrical cavity 40. Thus annulargroove 528 is formed; the diameter of which is about two-tenths inchgreater than the bore diameter. Lip 28 is molded in groove 528.Therefore; there will be an annular bevel at the perimeter on the fiatface of disc 10 at 30 angle to that face. The same tool 44 is used tocut an annular quarter round groove 546. The diameter of the groove 546is about two-tenths inch less than the bore 20. Thus when the valve iscast the annular groove 30 between lip 28 and quarter round bead 46 willbe about one-twentieth of an inch measured diametrically, i.e.,` along adiametrical line intercepting both the bead 46 and lip 28, about thecenter of the groove, the groove will measure one-twentieth of an inchwide. Along a diametrical line intercepting the extreme outer edge ofthe perimeter of the disc, the lip will measure abouttwotenths of aninch wide. Stated otherwise, the thickness of the lip would be themeasurement from one face of the lip to the other face, measured aboutthe middle of the lip normal to the lip which would be along the lineforming a 60 angle with a diametrical line. Thus measured, the thicknessof the lip would be about one` Patented eb. 2, 1960 whichr it iscast.VThe diametrical lines are normal to `the axis of the valve. Pins 48 arelocatedrin the mold and extend parallel to the axis of cavity 40. Theyserve the dual purpose ofpositioni'ng 4tlie'stiffener 24""whi1e: molde:

ing and forming holes in the vcovering forscrews;1

, The essenceof this valve is a supple, springyj lipoatl-Vl tached to amore rigid body which will operate in the;

mannendescribed above. 1 t

4It will be apparent that the embodimentshown `is only exemplary andthat various modifications can bexmade` in construction, materials, andarrangement Vwithin the 4kbore. radiallyy inwardlyV toward, said.peripheral. Y edseei,

said resilient disc is reinforced byametal stiiener plate,

scope of `the invention as defined in the appendedpelaima t I .claimasmy invention:

bore, a body lhaving two, openings diametriallyopposed; a shaft.rotatably mounted insaidopenings and a resilient; disc ,of similar;shape tothe-.cross section ofrthe'bore mounted on the shaft forclosingsaidbore; saidzresilient. a

disc comprising` in unstressed condition, asubstantiallyV cylindricalshaped resilientplate, avlip formedrby an exa tensionof a tirst atsurface ofnsaid resilient plate, Vsaid'` lipextending radially outwardpast the peripheral` edgey of said resilientrplate and extending fromsaid rst` sur.

1 face outwardly toward a plane containing the second at surfaceofsaidresilientl plate, to form an annular groove between said lip and saidperipheral edge, rotation of the,

disc to a rst closed position distorting the trailing edge of said lipby frictional and resilient engagement with said,` bore, said engagementbending the trailing edge radially,V outward andaway from the peripheraledge of said plate` said lip distortion causing a reactive resilient`force 4to: be exerted on saidplate by said distorted lip toletfet;

self rotation of said Vplate to, a final closed positionfina directioncounter toV therdii'ection of said initial `rotatioini: said lipv being.in peripheral engagement with said-boreat said final closed positionand being 4pressed .bysaid lsaid plate having perforations therein andbeing mounted onsaidshaft.

4. A lmtterily-valvev as .describedyin claim 1 wherein, Saidcyllidricalshaped resilient. Ailllat has a bead Pe- 1 ripherally`connected thereto at a small distance below said second at surface. l t

Y5. A buttery valve as described in claim l, wherein, a quarter-roundbead is peripherally connected to said peripheral edge of said resilientplate at a smalldistance belgwzsaidrxsecond atsurface, saidibeadhavingxthe'bot` tom portion thereof sloping radially inward to joinsaid:

peripheral edge, said `annular groove,deliruiedlby` saidlip and said:bead` bottom: portiomj t said groove having` a width` dimensionlessuthanthe thicknessof said lip.

meente. cited in the mehr thisl patear 1 @UNITED :STATES PATENTS

